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Holly Hill History Museum and Education Center

Holly Hill History Museum and Education Center located at 1066 Ridgewood Avenue in Holly Hill. Holly Hill a city that encompasses only 4.5 square miles situated between Ormond Beach and Daytona Beach. William and Mary Fleming founded Holly Hill in 1901 and named the town after his ancestral home in Holywood, Ireland. Vet Cave owner of Cave’s Cigar Factory named the first mayor.

Early maps, a biographical account of the city founders alongside biographical accounts and photographs of early settlers throughout the museum. Dr. Carter a minister from New Jersey moved to the area in the late 1870s and formed a mission. In the late 1870s, Gibson W. Harris from Illinois moved to Holly Hill. He owned a grocery and mercantile store. In 1845, while a law student in Illinois he worked in the law office of Abraham Lincoln in Springfield. Holly Hill the early years photographed by E.G. Harris, Holly Hill’s first photographer. A picturesque view of Ridgewood Avenue in the late 1890s.Due to the popularity of the automobile motels became popular in the 1930s. Fifty-one motels built along Ridgewood Avenue through the 1960s. Some motels remain others have been turned into businesses.

A famous ballplayer Nap Lajoie who played with the Cleveland Indians inducted in the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937 lived in Holly Hill. James Calvert Smith, an artist who lived in Holly Hill until his death in 1962. Known for his famous mural that hangs in the museum of the Castillo de San Marcos in St. Augustine.

Browse in the museum gift shop and purchase a painting by a local artist, jewelry, a limited edition throw pillow or coffee mugs. Take a book leave a donation.

I recommend the museum our museum guide was very knowledgeable. Free entrance to the museum, donations accepted. Hours of operation on the website.